Slide type portable terminal

ABSTRACT

A slide type portable terminal can include a main unit including separated first and second key sections and a first plate coupled to a surface of the main unit and a display unit with a display screen on a front surface and a second plate. The second plate can slide with respect to the first plate and preferably slides along the surface of the main unit to cause the first and second key sections of the main unit to be covered and exposed by the display unit. Further, first and second magnets can be provided on the first and second plates, respectively, so that the same poles of the magnets face each other to provide a repulsive force when they are positioned to face close to each other. According to embodiments of the present invention, there are various advantages in that the portable terminal can be utilized more conveniently and production costs and failure rates thereof can also be reduced.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.10/784,703, filed on Feb. 24, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,363,066, whichpursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 119, claims the benefit of earlier filing dateand right of priority to Korean application No. 2003-0047442, filed onJul. 11, 2003, the contents of which are hereby incorporated byreference herein in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a slide type portable terminal, andmore particularly, to a slide type portable terminal in which a slideunit and a main unit can be slid against each other.

2. Background of the Related Art

As an example of a portable terminal, there are a mobile phone, PDA(personal digital assistant), a smart phone, and the like. Such aportable terminal can be classified into bar type, flip type, foldertype and the like according to an external configuration thereof.Recently, a slide type portable terminal has come into the market. Theconfiguration of a related art slide type portable terminal isillustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the slide type portable terminal includes aflat, plate-shaped main unit 1 and slide unit 5 that are coupled to beslid in a longitudinal direction. A display screen 2 is provided on afront surface of the main unit 1. A variety of information is displayedon the display screen 2. A speaker 3 is also provided on an upper end ofthe front surface of the main unit 1 adjacent to the display screen 2.Further, a plurality of function buttons 4 are provided on a lower endof the front surface of the main unit 1.

The slide unit 5 can be slid against the main unit 1 to protrude beyondthe main unit 1 at a predetermined distance and is provided with aplurality of number buttons 6 at a front surface thereof. The numberbuttons 6 are fully exposed to the outside when the slide unit 5 is slidagainst and protrudes beyond the main unit 1, and the number buttons 6are covered by the main unit 1 when the slide unit 5 and the main unit 1overlap each other. Further, a microphone 7 is provided on a lower endof the front surface of the slide unit 5.

FIG. 2 shows a structure for providing the sliding operation of the mainunit 1 and slide unit 5 with respect to each other. As shown in FIG. 2,a main plate 10 and a slide plate 15 serve as the sliding structure. Themain plate 10 is fixed to the main unit 1, and the slide plate 15 isfixed to the slide unit 5.

Guide channels 11 are formed on both lateral sides of the main plate 10in a longitudinal direction. Further, fixing holes 12 are bored throughlateral ends of the main plate 10. The fixing holes 12 are portions intowhich an end of a torsion spring 19 will be fixed.

The slide plate 15 is relatively shorter than the main plate 10.Further, guide ribs 16 are formed at both lateral ends thereof,respectively, such that the slide plate 15 can be guided and slid alongthe guide channels 11. Fixing holes 17 are also bored through a centerof the slide plate 15.

The main plate 10 and the slide plate 15 are interconnected through thetorsion spring 19. One end of the torsion spring 19 is fitted into thefixing hole 12 of the main plate 10 while the other end thereof isfitted into the fixing hole 17 of the slide plate 15. A pair of thetorsion springs 19 are provided in a symmetric manner.

According to the related art slide type portable terminal, when theslide unit 5 is slid against the main unit 1, the slide plate 15 is slidalong the main plate 10. At this time, the torsion spring 19 provides anelastic force such that the slide unit 5 can be kept in a state where itoverlaps the main unit 1 (i.e., closed) and fully protrudes beyond themain unit 1 (i.e., open as shown in FIG. 1). In other words, if a usermoves the slide unit 5 to a certain position with respect to the mainunit 1, the slide unit 5 will be securely moved to a predeterminedposition by means of the elastic force of the torsion spring 19.

However, as described above, the related art slide type portableterminal has various disadvantages. First, owing to the elastic force ofthe torsion spring 19, the slide unit 5 can be kept either in the statewhere it overlaps the main unit 1 or in the state where it fullyprotrudes beyond the main unit 1. Therefore, there is a problem in thatit is difficult to use the terminal in a variety of states. Further, theelastic force of the torsion spring 19 is used to set a stop position ofthe slide unit 5 against the main unit 1. In addition, since one end ofthe torsion spring 19 should be fixed to the main plate 10 and the otherend thereof should also be fixed to the slide plate 15, its assemblyworks are difficult. Also, since the torsion spring is a mechanicallyconnected structure, there is another problem in that mechanicaltroubles are likely to occur in use.

The above references are incorporated by reference herein whereappropriate for appropriate teachings of additional or alternativedetails, features and/or technical background.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the invention is to solve at least the above problemsand/or disadvantages and to provide at least the advantages describedhereinafter.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a portableterminal and method that can be used with only selected function keysexposed to the outside.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a slide typeportable terminal and method that has increased reliability.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a slide typeportable terminal and method having an interlinking mechanism capable ofopening to selectively expose first and second pluralities of keys.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a slide typeportable terminal and method having an interlinking mechanism that has aplurality of tensioned stop positions.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a slide typeportable terminal and method having an interlinking mechanism issimplified and costs less to produce.

In order to achieve at least the above objects and advantages in a wholeor in part, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention thereis provided a slide type portable terminal that includes a main unitthat includes separated first and second key sections exposed in asurface of the main unit and a display unit that includes a displayscreen exposed to a front surface of the display unit, wherein thedisplay unit is configured to slide relative to the surface of the mainunit to cause the first and second key sections of the main unit to beselectively exposed, wherein the display unit can be selectively slid toa first position where both the first and second key sections of themain unit are exposed, a second position where only one of the keysections is exposed, and a third position where both the first andsecond key sections are not exposed.

To further achieve at least the above objects in a whole or in part, inaccordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided aportable terminal that includes a main unit that includes first andsecond key sections separately accessible to a surface of the main unitand a display unit that includes a display screen, wherein the displayunit is configured to selectively move relative to the surface of themain unit between a first position where both the first and second keysections of the main unit are not accessible, a second position whereonly one of the key sections is accessible, and a third position whereboth the first and second key sections are accessible.

To further achieve at least the above objects in a whole or in part, inaccordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided aslide type portable terminal that includes a main unit includingseparated first and second key sections and a first plate on a surfaceof the main unit, a display unit that includes a display screen on afront surface of the display unit and a second plate slidingly coupledto the first plate so that the first and second key sections of the mainunit are selectively covered and exposed and first and second magnets onthe first and second plates, respectively, so that the same poles of themagnets face each other to provide a repulsive force when they arepositioned to face dose to each other.

To further achieve at least the above objects in a whole or in part, inaccordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided amethod that includes sliding a display unit of a portable terminal to afirst position where both first and second separated key sections of amain unit of the portable terminal are exposed in an upper surface ofthe main unit, sliding the display unit to a second position where onlyone of the key sections is exposed and sliding the display unit to athird position where both the first and second key sections are covered.

To further achieve at least the above objects in a whole or in part, inaccordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided asystem including a slide type portable terminal with a first unit havingfirst and second pluralities of keys and slidingly coupled to a secondunit that includes a stopping mechanism coupled to the first and secondunits and configured to stop the first and second units in a firstposition where both the first and second key sections of the first unitare exposed, a second position where only one of the key sections isexposed, and a third position where both the first and second keysections are not exposed.

Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will beset forth in part in the description which follows and in part willbecome apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art uponexamination of the following or may be learned from practice of theinvention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realizedand attained as particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be described in detail with reference to thefollowing drawings in which like reference numerals refer to likeelements wherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a perspective view of a configuration of arelated art slide type portable terminal;

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an exploded perspective view of a structureof main portions of the related art slide type portable terminal;

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a perspective view of a preferred embodimentof a slide type portable terminal according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an exploded perspective view of a structureof first and second plates according to a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a rear view where the first and secondplates being coupled with each other according to a preferred embodimentof the present invention;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are diagrams that show a dosed state of a preferredembodiment of a slide type portable terminal;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are diagrams that show a partially opened state of apreferred embodiment of a slide type portable terminal; and

FIGS. 8A and 8B are diagrams that show a completely opened state of apreferred embodiment of a slide type portable terminal.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of slide type portable terminal accordingto an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is an explodedperspective view showing structure of exemplary first and second platesof FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is a rear view showing a state where the first andsecond plates are coupled with each other.

As shown in FIGS. 3-5, a main unit 30 can take the shape of a generallythin hexahedron and be provided with a plurality of number keys 31 at a(e.g., front) surface thereof. The number keys 31 can have a function ofinputting numbers, characters and the like. The number keys 31 can bearranged in the form of a 4 by 3 matrix. However, the present inventionis not intended to be so limited. For example, a different total numberor different arrangements of the keys 31 can be used.

Multimedia keys 33 (e.g., first function keys) can also be provided at aprescribed location below the number keys 31, on the main unit 30 (e.g.,at a lower end of a front surface of the main unit 30.) The multimediakeys 33 are preferably used to perform a multimedia function inherent tothe terminal. For example, they may be a key for operating a camera 45,a key for playing the MP3, or the like. As shown in FIG. 3, thesemultimedia keys 33 are preferably provided in a row at the lower end ofthe front surface of the main unit 30.

An antenna 35 can be provided at one side of an upper end of the mainunit 30. The antenna 35 is required for external communications. Amicrophone 37 can also be provided at a lowermost end of the frontsurface of the main unit 30. The microphone 37 preferably functions as atelephone transmitter when the terminal is used as a telephone.

Further, a display unit 40 is preferably provided on the front surfaceof the main unit 30. The display unit can also take the shape of agenerally thin hexahedron, and a display screen 41 is provided on asurface (e.g., front) of the display unit. As the display screen 41, aliquid crystal panel is commonly used but a liquid crystal panel havinga touch screen function may also be used. Of course, other variousdisplay units may be used for the display screen 41.

A plurality of function keys 43 (e.g., second function keys) can beprovided at a lower end of the front surface of the display unit 40. Thefunction keys 43 can allow the function of the terminal to beimmediately or continuously performed. For example, the function keyscan include a key used to execute a program for sending and receiving anelectronic mail, a key used to perform a telephone function whenreceiving a phone call, a key used to select contents displayed on thedisplay screen 41, and the like.

The camera 45 can be provided at a prescribed location such as at oneside on the upper end of the front surface of the display unit 40. Thecamera 45 is preferably rotatably mounted to the display unit 40 suchthat a camera angle can be changed without moving the camera itself. Aspeaker 47 can also be located on the upper end of the display unit andcan correspond to a telephone receiver when the portable terminal isperforming the telephone function.

The main unit 30 and the display unit 40 can slide against each other ina longitudinal direction thereof so that the number keys 31 and themultimedia keys 33 can be exposed or selectively covered by the displayunit 40. To allow the main unit 30 and the display unit 40 to be slidagainst each other as described above, an additional structure forguiding the sliding operation of the main unit 30 and display unit 40can be provided on the units themselves.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, an example of the structure, which isinstalled on the main unit 30 and display unit 40 so as to guide thesliding operation thereof, win now be described. A first plate 50 can beprovided on the main unit 30, for example, on the front surface at aposition above the number keys 31. Sliding guides 51 that allow thefirst plate 50 to be slid with respect to a second plate 60 can beprovided at both lateral ends of the first plate 50.

Stopper grooves 53 can be provided at a longitudinal side of the firstplate 50. In the illustrated embodiment of the present invention, thestopper grooves 53 are formed at both lateral ends of the first plate 50to face each other. Further, first magnets 55 can be provided about inthe middle of the first plate 50 in a longitudinal direction thereof.Although the two first magnets 55 have been employed in the illustratedembodiment of the present invention, the present invention is notintended to be so limited because, for example, more magnets can beused. Alternatively, the magnets 55 may be installed across the firstplate 50.

The second plate 60 can be installed on the display unit 40, forexample, on a rear surface thereof. The second plate 60 is slid withrespect to the first plate 50. Sliding guides 61 that correspond to thesliding guides 51 of the first plate 50 can also be provided at bothlateral ends of the second plate 60. As shown in FIGS. 4-5, theexemplary sliding guides 51 and 61 are in the forms of guide channelsand guide ribs, respectively, but the present invention is not intendedto be necessarily limited thereto. Alternatively, any other guidestructures for allowing the first and second plates 50 and 60 to be slidagainst each other may be used or added. Further, the recessed andprotruding sliding guides (e.g., 51 and 61 can be respectively attachedto either the main unit 30 or the display unit 40.

Stopper springs 63 can be provided on the second plate 60 to correspondto the stopper grooves 53 of the first plate 50. As shown in theexpanded view in FIG. 4, the stopper springs 63 are preferably formed bycausing a middle portion of a metal band to be bent and protrudeoutwardly. Front ends of the stopper springs 63 protrude outwardlythrough holes 63′ that are corresponding formed on both lateral sides ofthe second plate 60. The outwardly protruding front ends of the stoppersprings 63 can be securely but not fixedly seated into the stoppergrooves 53 so that the sliding operation between the first and secondplates 50 and 60 is stopped or resisted. Rear ends of the stoppersprings 63 can be held (e.g., using screws) on one side of the secondplate 60 such that the springs can provide an elastic force.

Second magnets 65 can be provided on the second plate 60. It ispreferred that the second magnets 65 be provided equal in number to thefirst magnets 55. The first and second magnets 55 and 65 preferably havea prescribed arrangement so that the same poles of the magnets face eachother to provide a repulsive force when they are positioned close toeach other. Further, if the first and second magnets 55 and 65 areplaced on the opposite positions of the first and second plates 50 and60, their repulsive force can be increased or maximally provided.However, a larger gap can be required between the first and secondplates 50 and 60 because of their thickness. To this end, the magnets 55and 65 may be placed into grooves, recesses or holes that are formed onthe opposite positions of the plates 50 and 60.

Operations of the slide type portable terminal according to anembodiment so constructed will now be described. The slide type portableterminal of FIG. 3 preferably has more than one stop position when thedisplay unit 40 is slid with respect to the main unit 30. That is, whenthe display unit 40 is slid with respect to the main unit 30, thedisplay unit 40 is preferably first stopped at a position where only themultimedia keys 33 on the main unit 30 are exposed to the outside. Sucha state is shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B.

The state shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B can be obtained because the front endof the stopper spring 63 is securely seated into the relevant stoppergroove 53. That is, if a user pushes up the display unit 40 against thefront surface of the main unit 30 in a state of FIGS. 6A and 6B, thesecond plate 60 is slid against the first plate 50 until the stopperspring 63 of the second plate 60 can be securely seated into the stoppergroove 53, whereby the sliding operation will be stopped. Therefore, theuser can use the multimedia keys 33 in a state shown in FIG. 7A.

If the user applies a force sufficient to overcome the elastic force ofthe stopper spring 63 to the display unit 40, the stopper spring 63 isnot seated into but passes over the stopper groove 53. Therefore, astate shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B can be directly obtained.

However, if a user wishes to use the number keys 31 while using themultimedia keys 33 in the state where the stopper spring 63 is securelyseated into the stopper groove 53, the following steps can be performed.That is, if the user applies a predetermined force to the display unit40, the stopper spring 63 can be elastically deformed by the slidingguide 51 and then retracted into the holes 63′. Thus, the display unit40 can slide from the position shown in FIG. 7A against the main unit 30(e.g., to the position of FIG. 7A or FIG. 8A).

In addition, if the display unit 40 is further slid against the mainunit 30, the magnets 55 and 65 can be placed on a position where theyface each other. In such a position, the magnets 55 and 65 can provide arepulsive force. At this time, the display unit 40 will slide or beurged with respect to the main unit 30 by means of the resultant forceof the repulsive force between the magnets 55 and 65 and/or a pushingforce applied by the user, in a direction in which the user applies thepushing force to the display unit 40.

For example, if the user applies a pushing force to the display unit 40in a direction of an arrow A in a state shown in FIG. 7B, the firstplate 50 is slid against the second plate 60 such that the state shownin FIGS. 8A and 8B can be obtained. In the state of FIG. 8, the numberkeys 31 are fully exposed so that the user can use the number keys 31.Here, an additional stopper mechanism can be used or required to allowthe display unit 40 or the second plate 60 to stop against the main unit30 or the first plate 50 at the state shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B. Theadditional mechanism may be provided, for example, at specificcorresponding positions of the units 30 and 40, the plates 50 and 60, orthe pair of sliding guides.

Alternatively, if the user applies a pushing force to the display unit40 in a direction of an arrow B shown in FIG. 8B, the first plate 50 isslid against the second plate 60 and the user can allow the display unit40 and the main unit 30 to overlap each other, (e.g., obtain the stateshown in FIG. 6A. Then, the second magnet 65 of the second plate 60 isgradually approached to the first magnet 55 of the first plate 50, andfinally, the state where they face each other is obtained. In such astate, if an additional force is applied to the display unit 40 by theuser, the display unit 40 is continuously moved by the resultant forceof the pushing force applied by the user and the repulsive force betweenthe magnets 55 and 65.

At this time, if the force applied to the display unit 40 is a forcesufficient to overcome the elastic force of the stopper spring 63 andthus to pass over the stopper groove 53, the display unit 40 can godirectly into the state shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B without undergoing thestate shown in FIG. 7A (e.g., a state where the stopper spring 63 issecurely seated into the intermediate stopper groove 53).

For reference, the position where the magnets 55 and 65 directly faceeach other may vary according to slide type portable terminal or thedesign conditions thereof. For example, it can be designed such that themagnets 55 and 65 directly face each other at an intermediate positionbetween a position where the display unit 40 moves highest (e.g., FIG.8A) and a position where the stopper spring 63 is securely seated intothe stopper groove 53 (e.g., FIG. 7A). In such a case, the repulsiveforce between the magnets 55 and 65 is used to allow the display unit 40to be slid to the two positions.

Alternatively, it can be designed such that the magnets 55 and 65directly face each other at an intermediate position between a positionwhere the display unit 40 moves highest and a position where the displayunit 40 and the main unit 30 overlap each other. In such a case, therepulsive force between the magnets 55 and 65 can be used to allow thedisplay unit 40 to slide into the position where the display unit 40moves highest and the state where the display unit 40 and the main unit30 overlap each other to the two positions. At this time, the elasticforce of the stopper spring 63 should be greater than the repulsiveforce between the magnets 55 and 65.

As described above, according to embodiments of the present invention, aslide type portable terminal can be a mobile phone. However, the presentinvention is not intended to be so limited. For example, a portableterminal can include a PDA, a smart phone or the like.

As described above, for example, the sliding operation of the displayunit can be performed in two steps by the stopper mechanism, so that theslide type portable terminal can be used either in a state where onlythe multimedia keys are exposed or in a state where the number keys aswell as the multimedia keys are exposed. However, the present inventionis not intended to be so limited. For example, embodiments according tothe present invention may be configured in such a manner that the mainunit and the display unit are slid against each other without using thefirst and second plates. The structure or mechanism for performing thesliding operation between the first and second plates can be implementedin various manners other than that illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. Further, additional steps in the sliding operation may bedesired.

Any reference in this specification to “one embodiment,” “anembodiment,” “example embodiment,” etc., means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the invention. Theappearances of such phrases in various places in the specification arenot necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Further, when aparticular feature, structure, or characteristic is described inconnection with any embodiment, it is submitted that it is within thepurview of one skilled in the art to effect such feature, structure, orcharacteristic in connection with other ones of the embodiments.Furthermore, for ease of understanding, certain method procedures mayhave been delineated as separate procedures; however, these separatelydelineated procedures should not be construed as necessarily orderdependent in their performance. That is, some procedures may be able tobe performed in an alternative ordering, simultaneously, etc.

As described above, embodiments of a slide type portable terminal andmethods of using the same have various advantages. According toembodiments of a slide type portable terminal of the present invention,the display unit can be slid in two steps when it is slid with respectto the main unit. As a result, the main unit can be exposed in whole orin part, if necessary, so that a desired operation can be performed.Therefore, there is an advantage in that the user can use the slide typeportable terminal in various manners and thus the convenience of usercan also be enhanced.

In addition, the display unit can be slid against the main unit by usingthe magnetic force of the magnets instead of mechanically interlockingparts. Therefore, there is another advantage in that the productioncosts and failure rate can be reduced because of a decrease in thenumber of parts of the slide type portable terminal.

The foregoing embodiments and advantages are merely exemplary and arenot to be construed as limiting the present invention. The presentteaching can be readily applied to other types of apparatuses. Thedescription of the present invention is intended to be illustrative, andnot to limit the scope of the claims. Many alternatives, modifications,and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. In theclaims, means-plus-function clauses are intended to cover the structuresdescribed herein as performing the recited function and not onlystructural equivalents but also equivalent structures.

1. A slide type portable terminal, comprising: a main unit that includesseparated first and second key sections exposed on a surface of the mainunit, wherein the first key section performs a first functionality andthe second key section performs a second functionality; a display unitthat includes a display screen exposed to a front surface of the displayunit, wherein the display unit is configured to slide relative to themain unit to cause the first and second key sections of the main unit tobe selectively exposed, wherein the display unit further comprises atleast one function key to selectively activate different terminalfunctions, wherein the display unit selectively slides to a firstposition where the first key section is exposed, a second position wherethe second key section is exposed, and a third position where both thefirst and second key sections are inaccessible; and a stopper mechanismcomprising a stopper spring and a groove, wherein first and second endsof the stopper spring are fixed, and wherein the stopper spring isconfigured to engage the groove to stop and maintain the secondposition.
 2. The slide type portable terminal of claim 1, wherein thesecond key section comprises keys for performing multimedia functions.3. The slide type portable terminal of claim 1, wherein the first keysection is a number key section.
 4. The slide type portable terminal ofclaim 1, wherein first and second magnets are correspondingly arrangedon the main unit and the display unit, respectively, so that the samepoles of the magnets face each other to provide a repulsive force whenthe magnets are positioned to face close to each other.
 5. The slidetype portable terminal of claim 4, wherein corresponding slidingstructures configured to perform sliding operations of the main unit andthe display unit are provided on opposite lateral ends of the main unitand the display unit.
 6. A slide type portable terminal, comprising: afirst unit that includes separated first and second key sections exposedon a surface of the first unit; a second unit slidably coupled to thefirst unit, the second unit having a display screen exposed on a surfaceof the second unit and a third key section exposed on the surface of thesecond unit, wherein the second unit is configured to slide relative tothe first unit to cause the first and second key sections of the firstunit to be selectively exposed, wherein the second unit selectivelyslides to a first position where the first key section is exposed, asecond position where the second key section is exposed, and a thirdposition where both the first and second key sections are not exposed;and a stopper mechanism comprising: a stopper spring disposed on atleast one of the surface of the first unit and the surface of the secondunit, wherein first and second ends of the stopper spring are fixed; anda stopper groove disposed on at least one of the surface of the firstunit and the surface of the second unit, wherein the stopper spring isconfigured to engage the stopper groove when the second unit is in atleast one of the first position and second position, and wherein thestopper spring applies an elastic force against the stopper groove. 7.The slide type portable terminal of claim 6, wherein the second keysection comprises keys for performing multimedia functions.
 8. The slidetype portable terminal of claim 6, wherein the first key section is anumber key section.
 9. The slide type portable terminal of claim 6,wherein first and second magnets are correspondingly arranged on thefirst unit and the second unit, respectively, so that the same poles ofthe magnets face each other to provide a repulsive force when themagnets are positioned to face close to each other.
 10. The slide typeportable terminal of claim 9, wherein corresponding sliding structuresconfigured to perform sliding operations of the first unit and thesecond unit are provided on opposite lateral ends of the first unit andthe second unit.
 11. A slide type portable terminal, comprising: a mainunit that includes separately accessible first and second key sectionsexposed on a surface of the first unit; a display unit that includes adisplay screen, wherein the display unit is configured to slide relativeto the main unit to cause the first and second key sections of the mainunit to be selectively accessible, wherein the display unit selectivelyslides to a first position where the first and second key sections areinaccessible, a second position where the first key section isaccessible, and a third position where the second key section isaccessible, wherein the first key section is operated to perform afunction of inputting numbers, and the second key section is operated toperform a function of playing music; and a stopper mechanism comprisinga stopper spring and a groove, wherein first and second ends of thestopper spring are fixed, and wherein the stopper spring is configuredto engage the groove to stop and maintain the second position.
 12. Theslide type portable terminal of claim 11, wherein first and secondmagnets are correspondingly arranged on the main unit and the displayunit, respectively, so that the same poles of the magnets face eachother to provide a repulsive force when the magnets are positioned toface close to each other.
 13. The slide type portable terminal of claim12, wherein corresponding sliding structures configured to performsliding operations of the main unit and the display unit are provided onopposite lateral ends of the main unit and the display unit.